The Poets Weave

Colleen Wells is a Bloomington, Indiana-based author who believes writing is a healing force and helps others feel empowered to share their stories. Among her publishing credits is the memoir, Dinner with Doppelgangers , and two poetry chapbooks, Animal Magnetism and Around the Bend . She is a Certified Therapeutic Recreation Specialist candidate. On this edition of the Poets Weave , Colleen reads...

Daniel Lassell grew up in Kentucky and lives in Bloomington, Indiana. His first poetry collection, Spit , was selected by Gabrielle Calvocoressi as the winner of the 2020 Wheelbarrow Books Poetry Prize. He is also the author of Frame Inside a Frame (2025) and two limited-edition poetry chapbooks, Ad Spot and The Emptying Earth . Find him online at www.daniel-lassell.com . On this edition of the Po...

Joseph Kerschbaum’s most recent publications include Mirror Box published in 2020 by Main St Rag Press and Distant Shores of a Split Second published in 2018 by Louisiana Literature Press. His work has appeared in Reunion: The Dallas Review, Hamilton Stone Review, The Inflectionist Review, Main Street Rag, In Parentheses , and Umbrella Factory . Joseph lives in Bloomington, Indiana with his family...

"Life is not worth living if you are too serious, and I get great joy from writing poems that are fun, silly, irreverent, and sometimes have a dash of commentary. Here are a few." Peter Kaczmarczyk reads his poems “Fat Shame a Cat,” “I Don’t Have Road Rage,” “In The End,” “Americone Dream,” and “Return with Interest.” Peter was raised in Massachusetts and now resides in Indiana. His writing is ass...

Poet Raisa Tolchinsky is the author of Glass Jaw , a poetry collection about the world of women’s boxing. Her work has appeared in Boston Review, Kenyon Review, and elsewhere.  She holds degrees from the University of Virginia and Harvard Divinity School. In 2025–2026, she served as a Visiting Assistant Professor of Creative Writing at Indiana University. On this edition of the Poets Weave , Raisa...

Mary Dezember is an award-winning author of stories and poetry as portals to possibilities. While earning her Ph. D. in Comparative Literature at Indiana University, she directed the Runcible Spoon Poetry Series. Professor Emeritus of English at New Mexico Tech, Mary was awarded a writer’s residency at the Historic Santa Fe Foundation in 2025. Her books include Earth-Marked Like You (Published by...

A Florida native, Heather Sellers is the author of five volumes of poetry. Her new collection is Women in Tampa Talking About Alligators . Sellers’ memoir, You Don’t Look Like Anyone I Know , was Editors’ Choice at the New York Times Book Review .  She teaches in the MFA program at the University of South Florida. On this edition of the Poets Weave , Heather reads her poems “Accidental Practitione...

Eric Rensberger grew up in Elkhart County, Indiana and has lived in the Bloomington area since 1979. In childhood he knew he wanted to be a poet, but it took him a while to figure out what that meant in practice: mainly making mistakes and starting over.  He has been published in journals and anthologies and has participated with enthusiasm in self-published projects. He has a large collection of...

From her book Glass Jaw, poet Raisa Tolchinsky reads "Bless the Boxing Ring," "Carmen," "Melissa," and "Jess." “Poetry is a language of imagination, which is world-building. To imagine, to act on imagination, to choose to create instead of mimicking ways of communicating, takes courage.” — Raisa Tolchinsky Raisa is the author of Glass Jaw , a poetry collection about the world of women’s boxing. He...

Writer Alyse Knorr reads her poem from her book Ardor: “Post-Partum,” “Incompleteness Theorem,” “Eclipse,” and “Ode.” Alyse Knorr is the author of six poetry collections and two video game history books. Her lyrics have been performed at Carnegie Hall and her poetry is permanently installed on a wall of the New York City Public Library's East Harlem branch. She serves as an associate professor of...

“A poem begins as a lump in the throat. A sense of wrong. A homesickness. A love sickness.” – Robert Frost Born and raised in Chicago, Janine Harrison is the author of Turning 50 on El Camino de Santiago, Weight of Silence, and If We Were Birds. Her work has appeared in Veils, Halos, Not Like the Rest of Us, Gyroscope Review, and Shackles: International Poetry on the Oppression and Empowerment of...

Allie Rigby reads "Nominare," "Signal," "Moonscape for a Child," "Mouse Fear," and "Gretel." “So much of my writing life, I’m discovering, is about loosening what I know, or what I think I know.” –Ross Gay Allie has roots in the chaparral and deserts of California. She is the author of Moonscape for a Child , published by Bored Wolves in 2024, and she’s a recipient of a Fulbright grant to Romania....

Peter Kaczmarczyk reads his poems “A Home For Jim’s Zombies” and “Mood For A Day.” Peter was raised in Massachusetts and now resides in Indiana. His writing is assisted by cats, who think they can write better than him by walking across the keyboard. Sometimes they do. Peter has published three chapbooks and one full length book, More Than a Whisper .

Colleen Wells is a Bloomington, Indiana-based author who believes writing is a healing force, and helps others feel empowered to share their stories. Among her publishing credits is the memoir, Dinner with Doppelgangers , and two poetry chapbooks, Animal Magnetism and Around the Bend . She is a Certified Therapeutic Recreation Specialist candidate. Colleen reads her poems “Hello, Walls,” “What it...

Mary Dezember reads her poems " Wild Conviction Epigraph: Poem 1" and "Poetry within the story: Poems 2-4" from her novel, Wild Conviction . Mary is an award-winning author of stories and poetry as portals to possibilities. While earning her Ph. D. in Comparative Literature at Indiana University, she directed the Runcible Spoon Poetry Series. Professor Emeritus of English at New Mexico Tech, Mary...

Writer Alyse Knorr reads from her book Wolf Tours , a surrealist novel-in-verse: “Day One,” “Wolf Tours Rules,” “Hunting Lesson,” and “Gratuity Not Included.” Alyse is the author of six poetry collections and two video game history books. Her lyrics have been performed at Carnegie Hall and her poetry is permanently installed on a wall of the New York City Public Library's East Harlem branch. She s...

Antonia Matthew grew up in England during World War II and has lived in Bloomington, Indiana since 1968. She has been a member of the writing group "Five Women Poets" since 1974, which has published three chapbooks and one CD. She has published a chapbook, Journey , and written a play, Antonia’s Home Front , a transatlantic audio theater co-production of Political Art, London and the Writers Guild...

Antonia Matthew grew up in England during World War II and has lived in Bloomington, Indiana since 1968. She has been a member of the writing group "Five Women Poets" since 1974, which has published three chapbooks and one CD.  She has published a chapbook, Journey , and written a play, Antonia’s Home Front , a transatlantic audio theater co-production of Political Art, London and the Writers Guil...

Antonia Matthew grew up in England during World War II and has lived in Bloomington, Indiana since 1968. She has been a member of the writing group "Five Women Poets" since 1974, which has published three chapbooks and one CD.  She has published a chapbook, Journey , and written a play, Antonia’s Home Front , a transatlantic audio theater co-production of Political Art, London and the Writers Guil...

Angela Lim is a poet, educator, and editor currently living in Bloomington, Indiana, where she is pursuing an MFA in poetry at Indiana University. In addition to writing poems, Angela has written dozens of juvenile nonfiction books. Angela reads "Without Compass," "COMPULSORY," "I find myself jealous of ghosts" and "Tell the Space Enthusiast 'No, Thank You'." 

Allie Rigby has roots in the chaparral and deserts of California. She is the author of Moonscape for a Child, published by Bored Wolves in 2024, and she’s a recipient of a Fulbright grant to Romania. Her writing explores health, climate change, ecology, and community, and has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize in 2020. Allie reads "Press Record Now," "Frog Skin," "Self-Portrait as Orchid," and "B...

“The secret of change is to focus all of your energy not on fighting the old, but on building the new.” --Socrates  Colleen Wells read her poems “A Party of Five Becomes Two,” “Heartblast,” “Love It or List It,” “Snow Day,” and “March Madness.” Colleen believes writing is a healing force and helps others feel empowered to share their stories. Her works include a memoir, Dinner with Doppelgangers –...

Mary Dezember is an award-winning author of stories and poetry as portals to possibilities. While earning her Ph. D. in Comparative Literature at Indiana University, she directed the Runcible Spoon Poetry Series. Professor Emeritus of English at New Mexico Tech, Mary was awarded a writer’s residency at the Historic Santa Fe Foundation in 2025. Mary reads her poems " This Isn’t Your Dream" and "200...

" Less than anything cannot satisfy man.” – William Blake Alyse Knorr is the author of six poetry collections and two video game history books. Her lyrics have been performed at Carnegie Hall and her poetry is permanently installed on a wall of the New York City Public Library's East Harlem branch. She serves as an associate professor of English at Regis University. Alyse reads her poems “Scattere...

Poet Daniel Lassell reads “Llama,” “Ritter Park Cabin,” “Frame [Like a resurrected body],” “Downward Rooms,” and “Frame Inside a Frame [In the underworld].” Daniel is the author of two poetry books: Spit , published by Wheelbarrow Books in 2021, after winning the 2020 Wheelbarrow Books Poetry Prize ; and Frame Inside a Frame published by Texas Review Press in 2025. Daniel grew up in Kentucky and l...